Improvement in safety-steps for railway cars



B. F'LIBE-CKWIITH, J. H. REY'N1ER-SON,"& AJN. CLARK.-

Improvement in Safety Step for Car Coupling.

N0. 124,318. PatentedrMa l 'gh 5,'-172.

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BENJAMIN F.'BEGKWITH, JAMES H. RYNERSON, AND ALEXANDER N. CLARK, OF CLAYTON, INDIANA; SAID BEOKWITH AND CLARK ASSIGN THEIR RIGHT TO SAID RYNERSON.

IMPROVEMENT IN SAFETY-STEPS FOR RAILWAY CARS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 124,318, dated March 5, 1872.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, BENJAMIN F. BECK- WITH, J. H. RYNERsON, and A. N. CLARK, of Clayton, in the county of Hendricks and State of Indiana, have invented a new and valuable lmprox'ement in Safety Attachments for Coupling (Jars; and do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawin making a part of this specification, and to the letters and figures of reference marked thereon.

Figure 1 of the drawing is a representation of our safety-step in perspective. Fig. 2'is a bottom view of the same.

Our invention relates to means for preventing accidents in coupling railway cars; and consists in the construction and novel arrangement of a step to be bolted to the end of the car, the same being provided with a stout rail or fender, within. which the brakeman stands when coupling the cars together and whereby he is protected.

The letter A of the drawing designates the platform of our step. It is of metal and strongly riveted to the ends of the bent bar or rail B. Bolts 0 c are employed to fasten the step 1 to the beam at the end of the car. The rail B is arranged with a semicircular bend, b, forward in the direction of the draw-head, to enable the brakeman to lean forward in the step, and therebymore conveniently reach the coupling-link and pin.

Such a step is especially adapted to freightcars, which have no platforms at the end. The brakeman is enabled thereby to move with the cars. He is notliable to be jostled out of place, and will be protected from pressure by the iron rail. At the same time the bend in the rail will support him, giving him the use of both his hands to operate the link and pin.

What we claim as our invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The safety-step herein described, having platform A and rail B with forward bend b, as specified.

Intestimony that we claim the above wehave hereunto subscribed our names in the presence of two witnesses.

B. F. BEGKWITH.

JAMES H. RYNERSON. ALEXANDER N. CLARK. *itnesses:

FRANK S. NEWBY,

R. E. RAGAN. 

